Kanti Kukadia and his son Sam moved to Perth from Kenya a few years ago. They recently bought PACK & SEND Subiaco. Within their first few months, they’ve attained exceptional sales and been on the receiving end of many 5-star reviews. We sat down with Sam Kukadia and asked him a few questions about his experience so far as a PACK & SEND Franchise Owner…
Tell us a bit about your past business experience…
We’ve been in the construction and real estate industry for the past 24 years. Our company built everything from single storey homes to apartment blocks and 5-star beach resorts… our speciality though was exclusive Italian villas.
What led you to buy a PACK & SEND franchise?
Having reviewed over 30 businesses, PACK & SEND presented an exceptional value proposition. Our research and visits to various PACK & SEND Service Centres revealed they had active brand awareness campaigns and a solid support structure. From a business perspective, what stood out most was that they had numerous sources of leads that were actively bringing new customers to the business. The company’s revenue model is effective because it really is a one-stop-shop for all things freight. With PACK & SEND, people don’t have to go through the trouble of ringing up 5 different businesses to compare freight quotes and then get another one to do their packing. We really save our customers time, trouble and money!
How did you find the assessment process and training program?
It took us about two months to get through the initial screening process which was extremely thorough. We also had enough time to interview the franchisor’s representative so we could learn more about them. It was clearly important to them to establish if we were a good fit before allowing us to make an offer for one of their branches.
We went through an intensive 3-week training program, including technical training of the new GMx online platform and a week-long hands-on training in-store with our dedicated Field Support Manager. It wasn’t difficult to manage our first week in-store as we already knew what to expect from the training.
You’ve performed very well as a new franchise owner. What would you attribute to your success so far?
Since Day 1, our mantra has always been customer satisfaction. This begins from the first point of contact by phone or email, right through to the safe and successful delivery of the package. We take our time to understand the needs of each and every customer – this helps us tailor our services to the customer’s needs and convenience. This requires us to sometimes go the extra mile, but in the end, we have a happy customer base, and that’s what matters.
We also work with numerous corporate clients who need to be attended to in a prompt and professional manner. These clients choose us so they can avoid the stress of handling logistics and focus on other priorities. This means we really have to be end-to-end in the solutions we provide. For instance, one of our clients had to get some samples to Sydney overnight but only called in after the afternoon courier pick-up cut-off time. We still took on the job, personally went out to pick up the item from their office and delivered it straight to the carrier depot. The samples were delivered the next day before 12pm, and needless to say, we had a very satisfied client!
What would you say to prospective franchisees thinking about signing up?
When you invest in a franchise you are really looking to get access to a proven brand and business system that gives you a competitive advantage to grow your sales. We certainly found this to be the case, so any prospective franchisee should be very confident that they will be equipped with the systems, resources and technology to grow their income. When you combine that with a growing parcel and freight market, then it is quite an exciting time to be part of the brand.
How do you find support from Head Office and your Field Support Manager?
We had a few teething problems and were at times unsure on how to tackle certain situations, but a quick call to our Field Support Manager has always helped in resolving these issues. The Head Office is structured according to individual departments with a proper chain of command in place. Whenever we need help, we just need to look up which department is in charge and they always take care of the rest, including escalating matters on our behalf where necessary.
Support also extends to carriers and I think this is one of the best parts of PACK & SEND. We get priority treatment through key account desks that give us direct contact with carrier representatives without having to wait on the line through a call centre. This makes communication a whole lot easier and helps us organise complex shipments directly with the same representative over and again.
What do you find most rewarding as a PACK & SEND Franchise Owner?
We often get contracted to arrange packaging and freight of antiques and paintings purchased in Perth. Nothing lifts our spirits like being called by a customer who just received their package to tell us how thrilled they are with our packaging and service as a whole. We also closely monitor our online reviews and find it satisfying whenever we get a new review.
No two days are the same as we get to handle some of the most unique items imaginable. I man the front desk and get to build relationships with interesting people and learn the stories behind the items they’re sending. This is quite important in building a service business like PACK & SEND as the personal touch keeps bringing back the customers.
Do you have any interesting customer experiences to share with us?
We recently had a chance to work with Amanda Allerding, an artist who was preparing to send her paper-thin artworks to China for an exhibition. The artworks were on paper, cut out into small delicate shapes, and when assembled together, stretched out on entire walls. We spent the better part of a week meticulously packing each of the 200 individual artworks, and had to mark and number each piece which would later be assembled like a puzzle. What made the consignment even more interesting was that the artist opted to use a Carnet document for customs clearing. This is rare and only used for high value temporary imports. There was an above average amount of paperwork which had to be coordinated with carrier teams in Sydney and China to ensure the items were successfully cleared.
To find out more about buying a PACK & SEND franchise, go to https://www.packsend.com.au/own-a-franchise/.
To read more about what our Franchisees have to say, check out https://www.linkedin.com/company/3547039/life/.